The lotus pond
Between the ticket gate and the foot of the stairway lies a lotus pond, which Ninh Binh’s tourism promotion centre lists among the sights of Hang Mua. A boardwalk about 260 m long, measured on the map, crosses it. From the summit the pond is the patch of green at the foot of the hill; from the boardwalk the hill rises straight out of it.
The best of the lotus is in June and July, according to a 2023 piece in Vietnam’s tourism magazine (Tap chi Du lich); no managing body publishes a bloom calendar.
The weather by month
| Month | Mean temperature | Rainfall | Rain days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 16.6°C | 28 mm | 9 |
| February | 17.5°C | 26 mm | 13 |
| March | 19.9°C | 46 mm | 16 |
| April | 23.7°C | 74 mm | 12 |
| May | 27.3°C | 169 mm | 13 |
| June | 29.0°C | 211 mm | 13 |
| July | 29.2°C | 236 mm | 14 |
| August | 28.5°C | 315 mm | 16 |
| September | 27.3°C | 362 mm | 15 |
| October | 25.0°C | 219 mm | 12 |
| November | 21.8°C | 67 mm | 8 |
| December | 18.3°C | 29 mm | 6 |
Long-term averages for the Ninh Binh weather station, from Vietnam’s national building code on climate data (QCVN 02:2022/BXD, Ministry of Construction). The year averages 23.7°C and 1,784 mm of rain on 147 days.
What it means on the hill:
- May to September: hot, with the most rain. The lotus and the green rice are at their best, and the climb is hardest. Go early or late in the day.
- October and November: the rain falls away; November averages 67 mm over 8 days.
- December to February: the driest months, under 30 mm each, and the coolest, from 16.6°C to 18.3°C on average. Easy climbing weather.
- March and April: warming again, with frequent light rain in March (16 rain days for 46 mm).
The 2026 storms and floods
Hang Mua was not on the lists. During storm no. 4 at the end of August 2026 and the heavy rain of mid-September, Ninh Binh’s tourism department published which sites had paused or changed their routes (reported by VOV on 24 August, Tuoi Tre on 16 September and VOV2 on 17 September 2026). Hang Mua was not named on any of them.
What did close:
- Trang An: route 3 closed from 31 July to 2 August for high water in the caves; one alternative route from 21 August; all visits stopped from 23 August; reopened on 25 August; adjusted routes on 15 and 16 September; boats stopped on 17 September 2026; reports dated 20 September have them reopened from 13:00 on one temporary route, until further notice. No notice restoring its three usual routes found up to 1 November 2026.
- Tam Coc: visits to Hang Ba paused from 24 August; from 17 September the boats ran only from the wharf through Hang Ca to the mouth of Hang Hai and back, and the electric car to Bich Dong stopped.
- Elsewhere in the province: caves at Thung Nham, the Hang Chua - Hang Ghe - Hang But route, boats on Ky Lan lake at Hoa Lu ancient town, and night stays in Cuc Phuong National Park.
A dry hill is not the same as an open road: floods in the fields around it can still change the way there. In the rainy season, check the tourism department’s notices for every site you plan to combine with the climb.
Tet
Tet, the lunar new year, moves each year. For Tet 2026 the province’s tourism department listed Hang Mua, Bai Dinh and the Hoa Lu ancient capital as open on 16 and 17 February, the last day of the old year and the first of the new, while Trang An closed both days and Tam Coc closed part of each day. Check the department’s list for the year you travel.
In short
| If you want | Go in |
|---|---|
| The lotus in flower | June and July |
| The coolest climb | December to February |
| The least rain | December to February |
| To avoid the heaviest rain | anything but August and September |